The Simple Board and Batten DIY That Anyone Can Do

Lauren | farmhouseish
by Lauren | farmhouseish
9 Materials
$200
1 Week
Easy

Do you ever just wake up with an idea that you have to run with right away? Unfortunately for my hubby, it happens around here all the time.


One weekend, I knew I wanted to jump into a new DIY project, but I wanted to keep it simple. I was thinking about wallpapering or pencil shiplap.


But then, I had another idea. Board and batten. I wanted to start in our main bathroom, but I had also been itching to try out board and batten down our back hallway.


And it just wouldn’t have made sense to do one without the other, right?


Now that we’re all in agreement…


So when my husband woke up and I hit him with the idea, I was expecting a little push back.


Instead, I got an, “Okay, let's do it.”


And I ran with it!


I did some quick research on other board and batten DIYs to get a sense of what I was getting myself into. There were so many takes on it.


Remove the baseboards, don’t remove them. Add more detail, add less detail. Space the batten this many inches apart.


The list goes on and on.


What I realized was that I needed to pick and choose what I wanted and run with it!

Measure, Plan, & Gather Materials


I began by measuring for materials. I read a lot of things when it came to the height of the railing, how far to space the batten, etc.


But what I ended up doing was simply eyeballing what I thought would look best. Simple.


This helped me get a sense of the materials I wanted to use.


WOOD


We chose 2.5in x .5in poplar wood for the railing and 1.5in wide lattice strips for the batten.


We also decided that we’d keep our baseboards as is, and we measured 43 total inches up from the top of the baseboards for our height.


That way, the railing would be 43 inches high, and the lattice strips would reach a little over 40 inches.


We drew out and marked where each piece of wood would go and wrote out all our wall measurements so we could buy the amount of wood we needed.


Then, I taped where we marked so we could get a quick visual!


QUICK TIP WHEN PURCHASING MATERIALS


Our very first lesson learned was OVERBUY THE WOOD!


Overbuy and return the extra once you’ve finished the project. We somehow ended up short and had to make a mid-project run back out to Home Depot that could have been avoided!


Anyways… once we had the materials, it was time to get started!


But before you get started, I’d highly recommend making sure you have the right tools on hand.


In addition to the wood for this project, you'll need...


  • Miter saw
  • Nail Gun


You also need:


  • Caulk
  • Sand paper
  • Wood putty (to fill nail holes)
  • Paint and brushes/rollers
  • Painter’s tape
  • Level


Okay, now it’s time to keep rolling!

START CUTTING & INSTALLING YOUR RAILING


Next, we double-checked our measurements and began cutting our 2.5in x .5in poplar wood for the railing!


Don’t let this part scare you — if you don’t have a power saw or are afraid to use one, you can have your friendly Home Depot workers cut it for you!


Once the wood was cut, it was time to nail it all up!


Do not forget to use your level, no matter how many markings you placed on your wall. Use your level for each piece of wood you nail up! The last thing you want is a slanted railing at the end of the hallway.


Luckily we didn’t make that mistake, but not all walls are created equal (ours are notoriously warped). So levels are our friends around here.


If you have the right tools on this step, it goes pretty quickly! Especially if you measured ahead of time!

CUT & ADD YOUR LATTICE


Measure and cut down your lattice, and start taping them to the wall! I used tape first to make sure the spacing was exactly how I wanted it before I nailed them in. This was a personal preference!


Once you've determined how far apart you want your lattice, use your level and nail them in! Simple as that!


Once your wood is all nailed to the wall, you’ll notice some cracks, gaps, and nail holes. Lots of them.


This is where caulk and wood putty are your very best friends.


You just fill the nail holes with wood putty, wipe off the extra, and sand it down once it’s dry. And then you’ll be asking yourself…. what nail?


I also ended up caulking every edge of the wood and lattice to ensure there was a seamless finish.


Once the wood putty and caulk are dry, sand it all down just to makes sure there are no rough edges left. Then it’s time to paint!

TIME TO PAINT


This is the easy part! Grab your paint, rollers, and brushes and get to work!


One of my friends told us to paint at the beginning of the project instead of waiting until the end. We did this in the bathroom but not in the hallways just because of the time we had to get the wood up, but it did make putting the finishing coat of paint on the bathroom walls much easier! Maybe consider this tip depending on what you need in terms of timing!


We matched our paint to our baseboards so it would match the rest of our home and look like it was always meant to be there, Then we put on two thick coats of paint and called it a day!

TO WRAP IT UP


This took us about 1 week to board and batten the bathroom and hallway while we were both working full time!


So bottom line — you can do this! If you’ve been considering jumping into a DIY with power tools and wood, this was a pretty good one to start with!


What do you think? Will you give this board and batten project a try in your home?

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Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
3 of 10 questions
  • Monica Monica on Jul 10, 2022

    I've always been told that brad nailer is not strong enough for board and batten. Was using a brad nailer instead of finish nailer good enough to hold the wood?

  • Mic76215517 Mic76215517 on Jan 04, 2023

    What did you cut with the miter saw? Were any of the edges mitered or were they all straight cuts?

  • Han85925059 Han85925059 on Jul 13, 2023

    I have textured walls but want to do the simple board and batten in my bathroom. What do you recommend?

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